Colorado Immigration Advocate Andrea Loya to Join Bennet at President Trump’s State of the Union

Feb 23, 2026| Press Releases

Washington, D.C. - Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet announced that Andrea Loya will join him as his guest at President Trump's State of the Union Address to Congress on Tuesday, February 24, 2026.

Loya currently serves as the Executive Director of Casa de Paz, a Colorado nonprofit that helps recently released refugees, asylum seekers, and immigrants facilitate next steps toward reunification within their communities with dignity. Loya is an immigrant herself and came to the United States when she was a young child. She navigated the complexities of the immigration system on her own and understands the uncertain, isolating nature of being new to this country.

"The Trump Administration has brought fear and chaos to Colorado and across the country with their cruel immigration policies, leaving community members to pick up the pieces," said Bennet. "Organizations like Casa de Paz and leaders like Andrea are setting the example for how Coloradans work together, stand up for each other, and protect our neighbors in the face of danger and uncertainty. I have had the privilege to see first-hand the work Andrea does for Coloradans and am honored she will join me for the President's State of the Union Address. I am deeply grateful for all of her hard work in Colorado."

"Casa de Paz is thankful for the honor of representing our important and dignifying work," said Loya. "We appreciate Senator Bennet highlighting the importance of the immigrant community and our presence in this country and in Colorado. We appreciate the lines of collaboration and communication that the Senator and his staff have opened and hope that we shine the light on a crucial issue in our country."

Bennet has consistently fought the Trump Administration's cruel and inhumane immigration policies. He recently took to the Senate floor to condemn Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) violence and lawlessness and to denounce the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Bennet also continues to call on Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Noem to resign. Bennet has voted against recent budget bills to extend DHS funding because they failed to overhaul ICE or ensure they are subject to the same, common-sense standards we expect of our local law enforcement officials. Additionally, Bennet is working on legislation to rein in DHS and ICE. He also introduced six amendments to the recent FY26 DHS appropriations bill that would protect children and families, bar enforcement at sensitive locations, and prohibit officers from wearing masks while requiring visible identification. This month, Bennet conducted an oversight visit at the ICE detention facility in Aurora, Colorado, and called for increased oversight of such facilities as well as expanded transparency and accountability for ICE.

Last month, Bennet joined his colleagues in introducing the Providing Useful Budgets for Localities to Invest in Cops by Substituting Appropriations from Federal Enforcement To Yield Results (PUBLIC SAFETY) Act, legislation to redirect nearly $75 billion in funding passed in the Republicans' One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) from ICE and send it instead to local law enforcement programs to help hire and train 200,000 local police officers in communities across the country. In February 2025, Bennet joined his Senate colleagues to introduce the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act, which would reinstate DHS's long-standing policies to prevent ICE from making arrests at sensitive locations like schools, hospitals, and places of worship. In August 2025, he joined the Immigration Enforcement Identification Safety (IEIS) Act to prohibit immigration enforcement officials from wearing masks and to require them to wear visible identification. In November 2025, Bennet joined his colleagues in introducing the bicameral Restoring Access to Detainees Act, legislation to ensure DHS allows non-citizens who have been detained to contact their legal counsel and families.

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